The invention relates to an appliance for brewing an infusion from a fill of brew preparation, such as coffee or tea in powder form or in a pack, the appliance comprising a water tank, a housing including a chamber presenting a nozzle for feeding hot water and an opening through which the fill of brew preparation can be inserted, means connected to the tank for acting during a brewing cycle to deliver a certain volume of water raised to a brewing temperature from said tank to said chamber, and a brew outflow orifice. The term “brew” should naturally be understood as being used herein in a broad sense, to designate any brewing of an infusion of tea, coffee, or of some other preparation of the same type.
More precisely, but not exclusively, the invention relates to an appliance further comprising a closure part for closing said chamber and mounted to move relative to said chamber, being capable of occupying an open position or a closed position corresponding respectively to filling/emptying said chamber, and to brewing the infusion.
Existing appliances of this type, e.g. as described in patent DE 3422432, possess a housing of large volume determined mainly by a large-capacity tank so as to enable a plurality of successive brewing cycles to be performed, and by rapid heater means presenting high thermal inertia, so as to enable a certain volume of water at the appropriate brewing temperature to be delivered, good for at least one to ten cups continuously.
In addition, those appliances having a moving closure part require a housing with a stand of large area in order to obtain good stability during those stages when it is being moved into the closed position or into the open position.
Furthermore, with such appliances, it is difficult for the user to envisage making an infusion away from home, e.g. while camping or in a vehicle, not only because of the size and the weight of the appliance, but also because it needs to be connected to an electricity means supply in order to power the pump means and in order to raise the water to an ideal temperature for brewing an infusion.
Nevertheless, in order to mitigate those drawbacks, vehicle appliances have been made, e.g. as described in European patent application EP-A 1 277 428. However, in spite of being of appropriate size, such appliances remain conventional in design, with practically the same bulky and expensive internal components.
In addition, when it is desired to brew and share an infusion of coffee in a meeting room, for example, known appliances are awkward to operate, and remain heavy, bulky, and noisy.